


Break The Silence

by love_write_edit_sleep



Series: 5 + 1 DBH [1]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Assault, Bullying, Crying, Emotional Hurt, Family Feels, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Kidnapping, Implied/Referenced Murder, Implied/Referenced Physical Assault, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Mental Breakdown, Muteness, Poor AP700s, Selectively Mute Matthew, Threats, Use your imagination to decide what happened
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-22
Updated: 2018-09-22
Packaged: 2019-07-15 13:49:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16064429
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/love_write_edit_sleep/pseuds/love_write_edit_sleep
Summary: 5 times the Family (and one asshole) tried to force Selective Mute!Matthew to talk, and 1 time they didn’t have to.-Matthew becomes mute after being attacked on his way home one night. No-one knows what happened. All they know is Matthew won't speak.





	Break The Silence

**Author's Note:**

> (AU set after the family from my Magnetization Of A Family AU move to a bigger house, which is basically 2 semi-detached houses with a hole in the shared wall to make one big house.)
> 
> I’ll leave what happened to Matthew to your imaginations ;)

 

It had been a month. No-one knew what had happened. One day, Matthew went to work like normal, and completed his duties as a Social Worker, then went to meet up with Jerry.

But something happened on the way home, resulting in Matthew returning, covered in his own thirium, his skirt torn and his shirt ripped. He’d pushed past the concerned family and shut himself in the bathroom, trying to get all the thirium off, before going to sleep on the bathroom floor.

Hank broke the door down when he didn’t emerge after an hour.

Things returned to normal after that, except Matthew didn’t utter a word.

Not even when he was told he was ‘to be suspended from work until he decided to speak again’. Instead, he returned to work and used sign language. After that, he was assigned to children who were deaf or mute, which meant a lot less work, but meant he wasn’t jobless.

But he never said a word…

* * *

**Hank:**

“Hey, Kid…” Hank forced a smile, sitting beside Matthew on the couch on his and Connor’s side of the house. Matthew smiled at him, but said nothing. Hank sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.

“I-I Just wanted you to know… If you wanna talk to someone, I’m here. You know? I mean, it’s been a month now… It’s gotta be building up in there, it ain’t good for you… You get me?”

Matthew nodded.

“And… If you wanna talk at all? I-I’m all ears.”

Matthew blinked, his smile fading as he realized Hank was just trying to make him talk, that he wasn’t offering support to let him know he was supporting him, but to try and get him back to normal.

“You okay?” Hank leaned forward.

Matthew nodded before standing and heading upstairs. Hank sighed, sinking back into the sofa.

He fucked up.

* * *

**Connor:**

“Good morning.” Connor smiled as Matthew blinked his eyes open. Matthew smiled back, nuzzling closer to Connor and closing his eyes in content. Connor pulled the duvet closer around them, pressing a soft kiss atop Matthew’s head.

“I had a phone call this morning.” Connor whispered, playing with Matthew’s hair. Matthew pulled away slightly, to show Connor he was listening. “I found a counselor. She said she can see you next Friday if you’re interested. She thinks she’ll get you talking by the second sess- Matthew?!”

Matthew threw back the covers and scrambled out of bed, grabbing a jumper from the wardrobe before turning to leave the room. Connor jumped up and grabbed Matthew’s arm in concern, his expression worried. Matthew refused to look at him.

“I-I was just trying to help.”

Matthew faced Connor then, a hurt expression on his face. Connor let him go.

The door slammed.

[Help Matthew: Mission failed]

* * *

**** **Gavin:**

“You can’t do this forever, you know?” Gavin grumbled from the other side of the kitchen table. Matthew looked up from his plate of pasta, tilting his head in a confused way. “You can’t hide shit from us. We’re your family, you’re supposed to trust us.”

Gavin knew Matthew couldn’t help how he was feeling, knew Matthew had his reasons for everything, but it killed him to know his friend was hurting inside, forcing himself into silence.

“We care about you, okay? A-and you’re just… I don’t know, you just don’t seem to get that.” Gavin sighed. “You gotta start talking eventually. Have you even tried just… making sounds? Are you unable to talk or just unwilling? How do we get you to talk t-”

Matthew slammed his fist against the table.

Gavin jumped, dropping his fork in a mix of shock and fear before looking up at Matthew, who now stood, clenching his jaw as he curled his hands into fists. Matthew glared at Gavin for a moment before storming away to his own side of the house.

Phck.

* * *

**Richard:**

“Matthew, may I talk to you?” Richard asked, leaning over the back of the couch on his and Gavin’s side of the house. Matthew sighed, but nodded. Richard moved to sit next to him, twiddling his fingers as he tried to word himself.

“I understand the others are trying to pressure you into talking. They are not meaning to, they believe they’re trying to help, but I understand. While I agree therapy is something you should consider, I just want you to know you have my full support no matter what.”

Matthew blinked in surprise.

“I do not know what happened that night, none of us do, but I won’t force you to talk about it, or anything else. I will speak to the others also. You… are your own person, do what you feel is right, but please stay safe… You are family, and if there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that family care about each other.”

Matthew suddenly threw his arms around Richard, hugging him tight. Richard returned the embrace.

“Whatever happened that night… I’m certain it was not your fault, and we do not love you any less for it, no matter the repercussions.”

A choked sob escaped the android in Richard’s arms. Richard held him close, rubbing his back soothingly as he attempted to calm him.

[Offer Support And Express Understanding: Mission Successful]

* * *

**Rookie Ramírez:**

“Hey, pretty boy.” Ramírez smirked, placing an arm around Matthew’s shoulders. Matthew tensed. “I just got a new case. Bunch of assaults on AP700 androids. See, you ain’t such a special snowflake. You ain’t the only one, so this… Silent treatment of yours? Give it a rest, yeah?”

“Hey!” Ramírez didn’t have time to spin around before Gavin had the man by the collar, slamming him down against his desk. Connor swept in, pulling Matthew close as Hank stood between him and Ramírez, glaring at the man. Richard watched Gavin in satisfaction, having been the one to alert Gavin and Connor of the situation he’d just observed.

“Don’t you fucking _dare_ speak to him like that!” Hank scowled as Gavin pinned the Rookie down.

“FYI, that case is fucking mine now.” Gavin spat. “You threatened a witness; Fowler will have your ass. But you also threatened my family, so I’m gonna have your ass first.”

“You won’t want to see this…” Hank whispered, pulling Matthew and Connor away. Matthew shook his head desperately, trying to reach out for Gavin.

“Gavin, Matthew doesn’t want you to harm Ramírez.” Richard announced. Gavin looked up and gave in to Matthew’s puppy eyes..

“Alright…” Gavin backed away, waiting until Hank got Matthew out the room to throw a punch at the Rookie.

Richard might have assisted.

* * *

**Matthew:**

Gavin regretted taking the case, but he owed it to Matthew, and he’d secretly hoped to get some information about what exactly happened during the assaults on the AP700 models.

Each assault was different, which didn’t help at all. Some assaults were physical, some were sexual, and some were fatal. A few AP700 models had been kidnapped, others had been disabled, others had been shut down.

It was thanks to Matthew, in the end, that anyone found the suspect.

“What the hell…?” Gavin whispered as he approached his desk, his eyes glued to Matthew and Richard gripping each other’s arms, Matthew sobbing as Richard stood stoic, his LED blinking yellow. Hank and Connor watched in concern. “Should I pull them apart?”

“No…” Connor whispered. “I… I think Matthew’s showing Richard what happened…”

“Fuck…” Hank breathed shakily.

Matthew suddenly gasped in anguish, dropping to his knees and Richard opened his eyes, kneeling down in front of Matthew, their LED’s red. Richard lent forward and pressed his forehead to Matthew’s.

“Thank you… You saved a lot of androids today…”

_“I-I’m sorry…”_

The whisper was barely audible, and if Hank and Gavin hadn’t looked at each other, wondering if they’d both heard the same thing, then they wouldn’t have believed it was real.

“Don’t you dare apologize.” Gavin choked, kneeling with Richard. “Don’t you… dare…”

“You have nothing to be sorry for, honey…” Connor sat beside Matthew, pulling him in for a hug. Matthew slumped against Connor, sobbing into his chest.

“I’m so fucking proud of you, kid…” Hank whispered, joining his kids on the floor before pulling all four into his arms. “Of you, Matthew, and of all of you.”

Matthew said nothing more, but the way he looked at Hank, his eyes full of fear and admiration and gratitude… Hank knew Matthew was trying to say he loved him. Hank smiled, ruffling Matthew’s hair.

“We love you too… No matter what.”


End file.
